Morocco - journey to the Sahara
Tale of a 300-mile trek across the High Atlas mountains
In the bustling main street of the Moroccan town of Ourzazat, across the High Atlas mountains from Marrakech, the cheerful pep talk from our guide was intended to prepare us for the challenges that lay ahead.
Ourzazat, pronounced Wah-za-zat, translates as "no noise", although nobody could understand why. And the only reason it didn't seem very noisy indeed was that our first stop had been the heaving heart of Marrakech itself.
We set off on a 300-mile trek spanning seven rather hectic days – safe in the hands of our trusty minibus driver who whisked us from the edge of the Sahara, up 2,000 metres into the High Atlas mountains and back to sand, this time in the Atlantic resort of Essaouira.
Our journey towards the Sahara gave the first chance to check out what would be one of the stars of the holiday – the Moroccan landscape.
The sun beats down mercilessly on this country for most of the year, with the average rainfall for September just 0.3ins and an average temperature of 31C. Yet miraculously, in the midst of the arid plains and hills, rivers occasionally force their way to the surface providing oases and vital agricultural land.
Within these pockets of green, villagers who live in traditional adobe dwellings – made from baked mud and straw – grow dates, melons, figs and apricots for sale in local markets.
Eventually, however, most of the water dries up and the Sahara stretches out for thousands of miles as far as the Red Sea. At the outpost town of Zagora, we left behind the minibus for the traditional transport of the Sahara.
Despite their amazing feats of endurance, camels have gained a reputation for being smelly and grumpy but I enjoyed a very comfortable ride to the Berber camp where we spent the night.
The return trek at 6am did give the thighs some cause for complaint but it was worth it for the magical sunrise over the sand dunes, just hours after being thrilled by the most starry sky I have ever seen.
It gave the next stop on our tour a tough act to follow, but a place used as a film set for Gladiator, Lawrence of Arabia and a host of other movies is bound not to disappoint.
The kasbah of Ait Benhaddou clings to a hillside above a dried-up river and offers wonderful views from the top. Kasbahs provided fortified strongholds for the families who controlled southern Morocco until the arrival of the French in the early 20th century.
Another spectacular reminder exists in the hill town of Telouet in the High Atlas mountains. Unfortunately, a complicated inheritance dispute means restoration efforts have been foiled but it is still possible to see rooms full of colourful tiles in geometric patterns from where the despotic Glaouis ruled the area.
Our accommodation in the mountains was rather more basic, what the Moroccans call a gite, which would probably just pass the youth hostel test in Britain. However, what it lacked in facilities it more than made up for in character.
The views across the mountains were stunning and after dinner we were treated to an impromptu drumming session by our guide and two workers.
Next day we found ourselves standing in the central square of Jemaa El Fna in Marrakech. Just 50 miles away, it seemed like a whole world away in its bustling 'busy-ness'. Once known as Assembly of the Dead because it was where executions were carried out, today's threat to life is likely to come from the cars, bicycles, scooters and donkeys that compete for space over every square inch of tarmac.
Smoke rises into the air above the fast food stalls, and snake charmers and fortune tellers battle for the attention of passers-by. In the narrow alleys of the souks (markets) leading off in all directions, the smells, colours and noise are even more intense as stallholders offer up their wares.
But for any city dwellers desperate for a slowdown in the pace of life, there is only one place to go – and that's surely the seaside.
Despite being just a three-hour journey from Marrakech, Essaouira can be up to 10 degrees cooler with the weather coming in off the Atlantic. That makes it the perfect place for wind and kitesurfing or just enjoying a few hours on the wide, sandy beach.
From camels to seafood, desert to beach and stifling heat to cool sea breezes, Morocco provides a magnificent assault on the senses. I will definitely return before the sands of time run out – and it is dragged into the 21st century by its proximity to Europe.
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Weather for Biggleswade
Sunday 12 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 2 C to 4 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North west
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 2 C to 6 C
Wind Speed: 16 mph
Wind direction: North west
